We’ve all dreamed up fanciful ideas that we wish we could bring into physical existence, whether that’s a cure for cancer or the ironman suit. Unfortunately, our reality is not so generous, and for the most part, our dreams will remain just that. Dreams.
Or will they?
Dreams don’t have to remain dreams, and there is a way to turn your imagination into reality. We’ve done it before. Severally, in fact. Just take a look around you if you need proof. A hundred years ago, who could imagine a knowledge network so vast, it encompassed the entire world and was accessible by virtually everyone? Or that we’d overcome human limitations and travel to the moon? Today’s world is full of things that we considered impossibilities just a few years ago, and given the pace of innovation, our reality will only get more fantastic.
But how can you transmute your creative ideas into real-world solutions?
Enter Delano Myers, an award-winning UI/graphic designer and web developer. While he hasn’t yet found a way to manifest the iron man suit with his mind, he does have some experience turning imagination into reality, and here’s how he does it.
Visualization.
“The ability to take things from your imagination and sketch it out on paper is a very underrated skill,” Delano tells me. Visualizing is the first step in moving your idea from the imaginary to the physical plane of existence, and it forces you to apply real-world logic and rules to your design and come up with creative ways to make it work. Depending on what you’re creating, it might take different forms, such as a blueprint, an outline, or a sketch.
Visualization also gives you a goal to work towards, and it helps you maintain your focus while you create and keeps you on track.
Today many tools can help you visualize, like graphic design and building software, word processors, or even a simple pen and paper.
Learn and Innovate.
After visualizing your idea in the real world, You will likely find that it just doesn’t work. That’s not surprising. Imagination operates on a set of looser, more accommodating rules while our reality is fixed and harsh. When introduced to such a hostile environment, your great idea starts to look—not so great.
But now’s not the time to give up. No, now it’s your job to make your idea resilient enough to survive and even thrive in the harsh world of reality, and you can only do that by learning and innovating.
Learn everything you can on the subject, consult experts and think up innovative solutions to the issues with your idea. If you can’t find answers, then look for workarounds—other ways to achieve the same or similar result. Like Delano says, “persistence, the willingness to learn, and the ability to put ego aside” are crucial traits for anyone seeking to bring their ideas to life.
Just Do It.
Turning your ideas into reality can be daunting. What if you fail? What if you encounter a wall you can’t scale, or what if you encounter a problem you did not anticipate?
These are all valid concerns that will likely come true, but you’ll never know if you don’t get started.
So start. Right now.
Get sketching or get writing or get creating. “Just start, “Delano says, “I find that the things that intimidate me the most are not as intimidating once I just start.”
You will face roadblocks; that much is certain. At these times, go back to the drawing board, learn even more, and try again. You may need to repeat this a few dozen times, but eventually, you will succeed.
Work Hard and Be Patient.
I’ll tell you now, turning dreams into reality is no easy feat. Transmuting your ideas into real-world solutions is its own sort of alchemy, and just like lead to gold, incredibly difficult. So you need to be ready to work and work hard. Delano says, “Work till it’s done.” “I’m not a robot, but I believe in doing good work, and good work takes time.” You may not see any results at first, but keep at it, and Delano guarantees that you will succeed.
Test It.
It’s not a solution if it doesn’t work, so after slaving over your idea for months, you need to do one more thing before you release it into the world, and that is testing it. That can mean giving it to experts for review, trying it out in real-world situations, or just gathering feedback from the public.
Conclusion.
It’s going to be a while before we get a fully functional Mark II suit, but it doesn’t have to take as long to bring your ideas to life. Delano does it every day when he creates designs, and you can do it too. All you need is a dream and these five tips, and your imagination is the limit.
Check out and follow Delano Myers on his Instagram.
